The first Seventh-day Adventist missionaries arrived in Australia in 1885. Six years later, Ellen White—one of the church’s founders—arrived in this distant land. Then aged 64, she was unsure of this calling and expected to stay no more than two years.

Ellen White’s time in Australia and New Zealand grew to nine years and represents her most mature and pioneering work. Her leadership saw the church grow signifcantly with new churches planted in many cities and towns, the establishment of what became Avondale College and Sanitarium Health Food Company, and publication of The Desire of Ages.

But these stories—many previously unpublished—also highlight Ellen White’s personal ministry close to her adopted home at “Sunnyside”, establishing a country home with a large household, supporting new church members and serving people in her local community.

Customer Reviews

Having never been to Sunnyside Historic House, I was most excited to be able to go on a guided tour of Ellen White’s Australian home just a few weeks ago. As our large group was ushered into the various rooms, I was interested to not only see the room where she wrote a large proportion of her writings, including The Desire of Ages, but also items she had used in the everyday running of her household. Our guide managed to intersperse historical facts with interesting snippets and captivating anecdotes of everyday life.

It was not until the end of the tour that I realised my guide had been Marian de Berg, author of Stories From Sunnyside. I could not wait to get my hands on a copy to immerse myself in more of the great stories that Marian had shared with us throughout the tour.

At an age at which many people would be planning retirement, Ellen White came to Australia to continue the missionary work that had begun only six years earlier. She “saw no light in going to the South Pacific” but “knew that if God did not want her to go, He would close the door.” The struggles of establishing an Adventist community in such a distant part of the world during an economic downturn proved her a true missionary, managing to settle her family and establish an Adventist college, health retreat, printing press and health food factory.

Stories from Sunnyside also draws the reader into the human aspect of Ellen White through stories of her everyday life and extended family. Her dealing with the poor and needy shows a depth of understanding of what it means to live a “Christ-like life” and is one that we should all emulate. She opened her home to everyone and many times sacrificed her own comfort to help those who were struggling, resulting in many lives brought to know the Lord. Many of us have read her writings but this book helped me to know the person who was Ellen White, especially from an Australian perspective.